HONG KONG
Smaller crowd turns out for protest over China’s stance
Hong Kong — Protesters marched in Hong Kong on Monday against suppression by Beijing amid mounting fear that freedom in the partially autonomous city is under threat. Official numbers were way down on last year’s event with organisers estimating 1,500 had turned out, compared with tens of thousands in 2017. But an AFP journalist at the scene estimated slightly higher, although crowds on Monday looked smaller than the previous year’s. The pro-democracy protest came a week after Hong Kong banned a pro-independence party on the grounds that it was a threat to national security, the first time a political party has been prohibited since the city was handed back to China by Britain in 1997. Crackdown The emergence of an independence movement calling for Hong Kong to split from China has incensed Beijing as it emphasises the importance of territorial integrity and has led to a crackdown on political expression. Leading pro-democracy campaigner Joshua Wong said he feared his party, Demosi...
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